Growing In Love
by dien04neko
Summary: Oneshot. Takeru's chronological memoir of his encounters with Hikari as they grow up. His memoir focuses on how he met her and how he became friends with her. My first attempt of a TAKARI.


**Growing In Love**

_Disclaimer : I do not own Digimon and its characters. Bandai© is to be credited for Digimon._

**One-Shot**

* * *

In front of the computer, an 18-year-old Takeru was typing some experiences he has had.

He was currently living with Yamato in a small apartment.

Today, he's the only one home for Yamato went out with Mimi. It's their third anniversary.

_I was a little boy behind my brother's shadow_, Takeru typed. _I was always following his lead, kept on obeying him. I would consider myself the best younger brother any older brother or sister could ever have._

When he realized what he just wrote, he laughed but decided to go on.

_My older brother was more of a loner than me. I had lots of friends back then. One of those friends was Hikari Yagami, the sister of my brother's best friend._

_Hikari._

_The name literally meant 'light'. Well yeah, she lit my life up. Ha ha, I might sound corny but it has connection right?_

The phone beside his computer rang.

"Moshi, TK speaking," he said.

"Are you doing well there? Just checking up on you," the voice said.

It was Yamato.

"Yep," he replied positively.

"By the way, Kari's coming over there," Yamato informed.

"What?" Takeru sounded surprised.

"I don't know why but she asked me if you're home," he said.

"Oh," was all TK could ever reply.

Suddenly, another voice stumbled upon the phone.

"Hey, TK!" Mimi said. "Hi!"

Takeru laughed and greeted her.

As soon as Mimi bid goodbye and hung up, TK put the phone down.

Right now, Kari and I are best of friends.

Takeru looked at the last three words he just wrote.

He paused for awhile and then continued.

_I remembered when we were just 8 years old she would treat me like her other girl friends. She included me on her tea parties with a couple of dolls and a plastic tea set._

_Of course, that was not okay with me. I would always complain but her childish pouts would always hold me back from arguing with her._

_At times, we would also play soccer along with his brother, Tai. She's not very athletic and she's a sickly little girl back then. Tai would always limit her movements as if something really terrible would happen. I was just watching Tai as he took care of her. _

The microwave beeped.

He was heating some leftover tuna.

He stood up to get his food and then he took a bite from it.

He placed the bowl into a nearby desk and typed.

_When we were both 12, Hikari suddenly changed._

_She's not socially involved with people anymore. She grew up to be a timid teenager. I was guessing it was because most of the time, she was confined in the hospital because of her weak stature._

_I was her constant friend and companion. Every morning, we would go to school together and every dismissal, we would leave the school together. She wasn't active during middle school. Me? I was an ordinary middle school student, studying hard for exams and would always participate in class activities._

_Realizing that Hikari was slowly drifting out of her own time, I helped her. Whenever she's suffering from nightmares, I would be there to tell her that there are lots of people around to stay with her. Whenever she feels like participating but wants to hold back, I would encourage her. I felt like her hero._

Takeru sat back and stretched his arms.

He grabbed the bowl he set aside and took a bite from it once again.

He stood up to get some water.

After his short break, he sat up straight and grabbed the photo album nearby.

Browsing from page to page, Takeru was more motivated to write.

_When we first stepped in high school, Hikari was still shy but she made some friends. We still go to school together every morning and leave the school together. Our friends, including our brothers, would tease us about our 'relationship'._

_Of course, we kept on denying. What is there to hide?_

_I even remembered that time when Mimi-chan got back from America, she asked us these exact words, "Going strong?"_

_We were both confused about what she's talking about then we realized that we were mistakenly identified as lovers…again._

_Amidst those taunts from the people around us, Hikari stayed close to me. She knew some of my secrets like my dream of being able to publish a book, my favorite hangout place and other stuffs like that. I also knew hers. She was afraid of the dark and being alone._

_I still remember that day when Hikari and I did a research on their house, inside her room. The lights suddenly went out. Evidently, it was a brownout. _

_She was about to cry and scream when I held her hand. I gave her a firm grip and she calmed down. Whenever she knows that there's someone with her, she would calm down._

_Our high school days were fun. Especially when Kari, I and some of our friends would go out. Seeing her smiles and her laughs is enough to satisfy my day._

Takeru smiled to himself.

Did he just write that?

A knock was heard.

Takeru stood up and opened it.

"Takeru!" she exclaimed.

TK smiled down at her.

"Come in," he said.

Hikari came in and sat on the sofa.

"Want something? Orange juice or lemonade?" he asked.

Hikari shook her head.

"So…why are you here?" he asked.

"Happy birthday," she greeted.

Takeru raised his brow.

"It's…not my birthday," he said.

"I know," Hikari said. "It's _our _birthday."

Takeru ran to the desk beside his computer and searched for a calendar. He saw a small calendar and realized it was November 3 today.

The first time he met Hikari was back on November 3. It was the time where he found her playing alone with a stray cat. Since then, they decided to celebrate every year.

"We're going strong, aren't we?" Hikari said.

TK smiled and caressed her cheek.

"It's so nice of you to remember our silly pact," TK said.

Hikari looked up at him, returning his smile.

"Of course," she said.

TK was deeply absorbed in her stare.

He closed his eyes and leaned in.

Hikari was just staring at him as he leaned in.

When they were just an inch apart, Hikari decided to close his eyes.

Their lips finally met.

* * *

_So, after all of these memories we've kept through the years, are we just friends or really lovers?_

_I guess we're a bit of both worlds._

_We never admitted that we're lovers but we'll never be just friends. _

_Being just mere lovers or just mere friends doesn't seem to benefit the both of us._

_All we know is, through the years, we're growing in love._

Takeru finished his statement and saved his document.

May these words he wrote last forever.

* * *

a/n : How did my first TAKARI go? I was actually amused by these two's relationship as best friends…he he, I love stories with lovers starting out as best friends first! Please review! Jaa ne! 


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